How we chose
We began with twenty-two candidates found through map listings, directories and business websites, and scored those that met our basic checks: each business is who it says it is, is trading today and can be reached, and holds anything the law requires for its services. Twelve met all three and the ten highest scores make the table. We looked first at what customers say — the star rating itself, since beyond a small handful of reviews volume adds nothing — then qualifications, then whether the firm has traded for two years or more and whether its cover is stated, then pricing clarity and website detail. Boarding licences sit with the council rather than any single trade register [1]. All evidence is dated early September 2026.
How to hire
Match the service to the animal first. A walker covers midday walks while you work; drop-in visits suit cats and small pets that do best at home; home boarding suits dogs that pine in kennels; and kennels or a cattery suit longer stays and multi-pet houses. Day care sits between walking and boarding for long days out. Say which animal, what dates and what your pet is like with strangers and other dogs in your first message.
Boarding needs a licence, walking does not. Anyone boarding cats or dogs — in kennels, in their own home, or running day care — must hold an animal activity licence from Telford and Wrekin Council under national licensing rules, with a star rating of one to five [1] [2]. Ask for the licence number and the star rating, then confirm both with the council's licensing team before you book [1]. A home boarder who cannot give you a number is one to walk away from.
Keys change everything, so check the person holding them. Pet sitters are usually self-employed, which means they request their own criminal-record check and show you the certificate — ask to see it and check its date, since a check never expires on paper but only covers the day it ran [3]. Ask for the public liability insurance certificate and the insurer's name, plus any first-aid training, in the same message [4]. NarpsUK runs a voluntary register of sitters and walkers with a postcode search, and asks its members to hold insurance and a current criminal-record check — a membership is a useful extra, not a legal badge [4].
If a pet taxi is part of the deal, check the van too. Anyone carrying animals over longer distances as part of paid work needs a transporter authorisation, with two tiers for shorter and longer journeys, and must carry a copy to show on request [5]. Ask which tier the driver holds and to see the paper before your pet travels [5]. For ordinary walks and visits around Telford this does not apply, but a sitter driving dogs to distant fields should still be able to describe how each dog travels secured.
Telford itself adds a few wrinkles. Eight conservation areas sit inside the borough, including Newport, Wellington and the Severn Gorge [8], and the Ironbridge Gorge carries World Heritage status with extra planning controls on homes [9]. That matters when the job touches the building: a new cat flap, higher fencing or a kennel run at a Gorge or conservation-area home can need permission first, so check with the council's planning team before work starts [8] [9]. Agree access in the same message — where the sitter parks, which door they use and how the garden shuts — and put the answers on the booking form.
Get two or three quotes in writing on the same scope so you compare like with like. Each quote should name the dates and times, whether walks are solo or group and how many dogs go out together, how many animals are covered, mileage charges, extras such as medication or a second visit, bank-holiday terms, and the total. One Telford walker publishes all of this on its site; most firms here publish none of it, which makes the written quote your only protection. The quote should also state payment terms — deposit, balance date and how you pay — plus what happens if you cancel or come home early, so neither side argues the ending.
Meet before you book, then file the paperwork. A first meeting at your home shows you how the sitter handles your pet and lets them note feed times, vet details, emergency contacts and behaviour quirks — expect a booking form covering all of it [4]. Kennels will want vaccination proof before entry, so have the certificate ready. At the end you should hold the quote, the booking terms or service contract, the sitter's licence number where one applies, and the invoice — keep them with your pet's records where you can find them for the next trip. Leave a one-page emergency sheet on the fridge as well: vet and out-of-hours numbers, medication doses, and who authorises treatment if you cannot be reached.
From first contact to sign-off, a typical booking runs the same way. Your first message names the animal, the dates and the job; the sitter replies with availability and a price for that scope. A home visit follows, where you watch them handle your pet and they note feed times, vet details, emergency contacts and behaviour quirks. For boarding, add a short trial stay before a long one. Only then do keys change hands, against the written quote and booking terms — and the trip ends with an invoice, a note on how each visit went, and keys returned or kept securely for next time.
Pricing
As of autumn 2026, the only published Telford figures in this round are AnimaLia's: solo walks from twelve pounds fifty for half an hour to seventeen pounds fifty for the hour, group walks at twelve pounds fifty to fifteen pounds, field play sessions at twenty pounds, five pounds per extra dog from the same house, a two pounds fifty mileage charge beyond five miles, and a ten-pound first meeting discounted off the first invoice. These come from the firm's own site, checked this September [6].
No other firm in the table publishes rates, so home boarding, day care, drop-in visits and house sitting are all quote-only across the rest of Telford. Treat any figure quoted on a social page as a starting question rather than a price, and always ask what exactly it covers before you compare it with another.
What moves the price is mostly time and attention: solo walks cost more than group ones, longer walks more than short ones, and extra dogs, mileage, medication and bank-holiday cover all add on. Overnight and multi-day care should spell out what each twenty-four hours includes — feeds, walks, medication — so two quotes for the same dates can be compared fairly.
Ask whether VAT is included, since small sitters usually sit below the ninety-thousand-pound registration threshold and quote without it [7]. Then get the whole scope in writing before you hand over keys or pay a deposit: dates, services, extras, the total, and what happens if you cancel or come home early.
Home boarding turns on attention more than nights. The quote should reflect the length of the stay, whether your dog boards alone or alongside others, how many walks and feeds each day includes, medication, and any peak-time terms for school holidays. Ask for a short trial stay before a long booking, and agree in the same message whether it is charged as a single night.
Day care usually covers the working day, so check which hours the fee includes and what extra hours cost. Drop-in visits come down to visit length, the number of visits per day, and tasks such as medication or litter trays. House sitting, where the sitter sleeps in your home, comes down to the number of nights plus daytime cover, while pet taxi work adds mileage — agree whether the fare runs per mile or per trip.
Red flags
Boards dogs in their own home but cannot give you a council licence number to confirm with Telford and Wrekin [1].
Walks your dog with no stated insurance and will not name an insurer when asked [4].
Quotes for boarding without asking for vaccination proof, vet details or an emergency contact.
Offers group walks but will not say how many dogs go out together or whether yours mixes with strangers' dogs.
Holds keys to your home but shows no criminal-record check and will not say when one was last run [3].
Gives a single price with no breakdown of walks, extras, mileage or bank-holiday terms.
Will not put dates, services and the total in writing before you hand over keys or pay a deposit [4].
Refuses a first meeting at your home before the booking starts.
Corrections and business responses
Tell us what needs checking, or ask to claim a listing and reply to an assessment.